This invention relates to an air conditioner having a compressor the outer periphery of which is covered with a sound-proof cover and relates more particularly to an air conditioner having an improved sound-proof cover.
Conventional air conditioners of this type is designed to reduce noise generated from a compressor during operation by covering outer peripheral portions of the compressor with a cylindrical sound-proof cover which is spaced apart from the compressor.
In this type of conventional air conditioners, the sound-proof cover is formed of a sound-proof material such as felt having a thickness of about 5 to 15 mm, or a similar felt member with a polyvinyl chloride sheet adhered to the outer surface thereof. Felt is very cheap and is suitable for mass production, but it is inferior in terms of adiabatic and sound absorbing performances.
The heat insulating performance of the sound-proof cover is therefore inadequate in a case where the compressor is operated in a region where the outside temperature is low. As a result, the time taken to start supplying hot air after heating operation has been started is long.
The sound-proof cover reduces the heat radiation loss of the compressor and therefore entails a problem of a reduction in the operating efficiency, e.g., a problem of losses of heating power in a case where the compressor is pre-heated by wire heating or the like. Moreover, the conventional technique cannot provide an effective noise reduction means.